Final Cut Pro X Announced

Wow.

Editors are probably wiping their collective brow as previous talk of the next version of Final Cut Pro had made it seem like an iMoviefication would be coming to the Pro app. While Apple has significantly overhauled the interface, and changed some long-held editing philosophies, at this point, it looks like it has a ton to offer professional editors. The highlights: one-click color conform, edit AVCHD footage while it is still ingesting, smart changes to the way nesting works, as well as the way audio and video travel together, ensuring everything stays in sync, rolling shutter fix for HDSLR's, Flips, etc. Oh, and background rendering, and people/shot detection.

Demoing the product in front of a friendly crowd at the FCP meetup at NAB, the reaction was positive. With that said, there are still questions as we await the June release ($299 in App Store).

First, we're talking strictly about Final Cut here. Will this herald the end of Soundtrack Pro? With a new emphasis on sound editing, it looks like many of the uses for Soundtrack could be integrated into FCP. The same for Color. While high-end color correction would still require a standalone app, Apple could decide integrating the most-used features of Color into Final Cut is enough, and leave the super high-end of color correction to other vendors. What about DVD Studio Pro? Has Apple's crusade to get everyone off of disc-based media finally made it to the pro apps?

The new timeline doesn't have tracks. That could be an interesting thing to get used to. There was also a rumor that tape capture would be cut from this version of FCP. No word on that yet. Also we don't have any idea how much of a real-world performance boost could come from the 64-bit re-write of the app.

While questions remain, the features and enhancements Apple chose to show to a picky group of editors shows a ton of promise. We can't wait to try it out.

A Sneak Peek At the Next Version of Final Cut

NAB is upon us, or more appropriately, upon Las Vegas with over 90,000 expected attendees. It has long been anticipated that this event would serve as the unveiling of the next version of Apple's Final Cut Studio, and now it looks like we might know when and where you can get a peek at the next version of Apple's flagship editing suite. 

The Final Cut Pro User Group Supermeet, taking place Tuesday night had made an interesting addition to their event schedule:

"The Final Cut Pro User Group Network is excited to have a very special guest presentation at the 10th Annual Las Vegas FCPUG SuperMeet. Come to see a surprise sneak peek at something very special - you really do not want to miss this one."

It would be out of character for Apple to formally introduce a product at a user group meetup, so logic would say we should expect a product announcement on the Apple website sometime Tuesday, with the meetup group event acting as the public's first chance to play with the new software. 

Then again, maybe someone is just introducing a new plug-in for Final Cut that Hipstamatics your video, but we doubt it.

Could Apple Have an NAB Trick Up Its Sleeve?

This week marks the NAB Show in Las Vegas. In the past, Apple has used the event to demo updates to Final Cut, DVD Studio, Color, Motion, etc. This year Apple is sitting out the event, without a booth on the exhibit floor. But does that mean they don't have a surprise in store?

The current Final Cut Studio suite is full of what seems like all the tools a video editor/DVD author/ effects person could want. Of course it seemed that way before they even added Color, which was quite a jaw dropper. And FCS 2 has been out for two years now, beyond the traditional update cycle for the software. As a matter of fact, there's been an update or addition to the pro video apps every year since 2001, except for 2008. 

Maybe Snow Leopard is holding up the delay of a new addition. Or maybe, just maybe, we're closer to seeing a new version than we think. All the way back to 2006 there was talk of a rumored suite codenamed "Phenomenon" which would resemble today's suite, but include the functionality of Shake, Apple's high-end (and largely un-updated) compositing software. At the time, the software was expected in 2008. Overdue, or abandoned? We might know by the end of the week...